BP Letter Suggests Bribery, Corruption Within Oil Company's Shipping Division

A recent letter to chief executive officer Robert Dudley alleges that bribery and corruption have permeated BP's shipping division for several years, the Daily Telegraph reveals.

The anonymous message, written by someone claiming to be a "BP employee," asserts that a senior BP official received cash in exchange for the "chartering of tankers at preferential terms for the supplier. The letter's author also claims to possess details of the bribery payments and further evidence of corruption at BP. The author told Dudley, "We expect you to take all necessary action to protect the shareholders' interests and safeguard BP's reputation for anti-corruption and bribery."

As of Thursday, BP had only acknowledged receipt of the letter. A spokesman said, "We received a letter last week that contained serious allegations, and, as we always do with such matters, we will investigate them," reported Reuters.

In addition to BP's CEO, the letter was also sent to the UK's Serious Fraud Office (SFO). The Daily Telegraph explains that in addition to bribe givers and takers, the SFO can prosecute companies that "have not put in place 'adequate procedures' to prevent bribery."

While BP's official corporate Code of Conduct clearly addresses concerns related to bribery and corruption, the SFO could still hold BP accountable under the UK's 2011 Bribery Act if the letter's allegations are true. The act allows for unlimited fines to be levied on British companies that engage in bribery both in the UK and abroad.

The recent corruption allegations come after BP announced a $7.8 billion settlement for claims stemming from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill that leaked millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico over the course of three months.

ProPublica explains that the settlement figure, which is merely an estimate of "what it will cost to meet outstanding claims," could grow. In fact, the $7.8 billion is "significantly less" than some were expecting and "does not appear to require BP to spend any money that it had not already agreed to pay."

This analysis calls into question whether BP will prioritize the full compensation due to its numerous victims, especially after HuffPost's Sam Stein reported that BP spent $8.43 million on congressional lobbying in 2011, a figure representing less than one half of one percent of that year's profits.

BP's shipping unit is the "the world’s second-largest charterer of tankers," according to Bloomberg Businessweek and reportedly lost $143.6 million in 2010 due to "'challenging market conditions' and lower hire costs for tankers."

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Comments

[vetxcl]

08:27 PM on 03/28/2012

It's about time more of their behavior had consequences. They should really lose their government contracts as well.

[Genders]

05:57 PM on 03/18/2012

Rich man pays a fine, poor man goes to prison.....

[kareemachan]

01:35 PM on 03/18/2012

Corruption at BP? I'm shocked!! Shocked, I say!!!

[Sunny White]

12:16 PM on 03/17/2012

Shocker. BP needs to be run out of the US. Who's with me?

[bayside]

11:15 AM on 03/17/2012

They are in bed with our congressmen as well. They advertise on rush...This is the kind of company they are.

[WhatDaBleep]

08:20 AM on 03/17/2012

BP and all other oil companies should have to prove that they are NOT Corrupt!

[D-Driller]

05:15 AM on 03/17/2012

I like whistleblowers. It makes management look over their shoulder and keeps them straight. It will be interesting to see what the investigation turns up, and if these charges of corruption are true.

[DANIELISTICALL]

12:13 PM on 03/16/2012

Lessons From Exxon Valdez
But in past cases, corporations have been able to talk their way out of hefty damages. In the case of the Exxon Valdez oil spill of 1989, for example, Exxon spent more than a decade weaseling its way out of paying $5 billion in punitive damages to plaintiffs, which included more than 34,000 fishermen, natives, local governments, etc.

Exxon appealed a 1994 verdict in which an Anchorage jury awarded $5 billion in punitive damages to the plaintiffs; the damages were then halved to $2.5 billion. Then the company appealed to the Supreme Court, which capped damages at a little more than $500 million. (The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals later ruled that the company was still obligated to pay $470 million for interest on the damages.)

[bpsick]

08:25 AM on 03/16/2012

The corruption runs right the line to the settlement in the Gulf ,, the only one getting paid are the Lawyers, I ve been sick since the spill toxic exposure from decon work spoke with my Lawyer on the15th the highest settlement for toxic injury is $60,000, that want even cover the cost of my doctors and med.s That I will have to take for the rest of my life, @ a cost of $1300.00 each month,, so talk about corruption, but The LAWYERS both sides. are the only ones getting ahead

[Wildlife2064]

06:39 AM on 03/16/2012

In other news, John Lennon was killed and the Doobie Brothers broke up...

[Johnathan L Ungricht]

05:12 AM on 03/16/2012

BP, corrupt, no surprises here.

[oldwolf49]

01:27 AM on 03/16/2012

I refuse to accept that there is any kind of corruption within a company so vast, so wealthy, so full of greed, so rich with stolen money from hard working people who have little choice but to pay for gas with a price set at a level that guarantees them a 40% profit margin. I just refuse to believe it, especially when I ain't gettin' none of it!!

[trespanieli]

11:19 PM on 03/15/2012

Corruption in BP? NO, say it ain't so!

[Jesse Taylor]

10:36 PM on 03/15/2012

Wait, BP is bribing public officials to get favorable regulations? Really? Oh my god, stop the presses. Are other companies doing this too?

[BrokenCrown]

08:17 PM on 03/15/2012

Not surprising at all. Chevron also needs investigation. 7.8 billion dollars is nothing. The disaster has affected much more than that. They should pay all the fisherman and residents in the area too.